It is known that it is desirable to make a vehicle, and in particular an aircraft, using components which are as light as possible while still having sufficient strength to withstand the stresses to which they are subjected. In particular, aircraft wheels must be capable of withstanding the very large stresses to which they are subjected during landing and while running on the ground. In addition, it is known that aircraft tires are incapable of being deformed sufficiently to enable the edges of their side walls to be passed over the beading of the wheel, and as a result it is necessary for an aircraft wheel to be dismountable in order to enable a tire to be installed on its rim. In this respect, it is known to make an aircraft wheel out of light alloy comprising a rim associated with a hub by at least one side wall and having removable beading mounted thereon in sealed manner and held in place on the rim on an assembly side thereof by a keeper.
In order to lighten vehicle wheels further, attempts have been made to make them of composite material, in particular carbon fiber embedded in an organic resin. However, it has been observed that a rim made of composite material does not have sufficient strength to withstand the stresses transmitted by the keeper. Attempts have therefore been made to make wheels of composite material comprising two portions which are connected to each other in a mid plane extending substantially perpendicularly to the axis of rotation of the wheel. However, it is difficult to mount a tire on the two separated portions and then reconnect them, and such a structure has therefore turned out to be unsatisfactory from a practical point of view.
An object of the invention is to provide a composite vehicle wheel having sufficient strength while nevertheless allowing a tire to be mounted easily on the wheel.